


Bloody pirates!

by Fantasticoncer



Series: Pirates and dreams [1]
Category: Pirates of the Caribbean (Movies)
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Arranged Marriage, BAMF Elizabeth Swann, Big Sisters, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, F/M, Father-Daughter Relationship, Female Bonding, Fluff and Angst, Male-Female Friendship, Marriage Proposal, Mostly Canon Compliant, Movie: Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, Out of Character, Partner Betrayal, Post-Curse of the Black Pearl, Prophetic Dreams, Prophetic Visions, Protective Siblings, Romance, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Love, Sister-Sister Relationship, Sneaking Around
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:21:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 18,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25130788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fantasticoncer/pseuds/Fantasticoncer
Summary: Catherine Swann has dreamt of a cursed ship with black sails and moving skeletons for as long as she can remember. Her father and sister are convinced that they're nothing more than a dream, but she isn't so certain.What happens when said cursed ship arrives in Port Royal and her sister gets taken?
Relationships: Elizabeth Swann & Weatherby Swann, Elizabeth Swann/Will Turner, James Norrington/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Pirates and dreams [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1820389
Comments: 18
Kudos: 38





	1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

Ten year old Elizabeth Swann was standing at the front of the _HMS Dauntless_ as it sailed through the Caribbean sea, looking out into the mist as she sang a pirate's song. _"Drink up me 'earties, yo ho._ _Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me._ _We extort, we pilfer, we filch, and sack._ _Drink up.."_ She sang, before jumping around with a small gasp as someone suddenly grabbed her shoulder from behind.

"Quiet, missy. Cursed pirates sail these waters. You don't want to bring them down on us, do ya?" Joshamee Gibbs whispered, looking around cautiously. "Mr. Gibbs, I do hope that you are not scaring my sister, are you?" A soft voice sounded from behind them as Catherine Swann joined them and put her hands on her little sister's shoulders. Her words got the attention from two other people on the deck. "Mr. Gibbs. That will do." Lieutenant James Norrington said in a stern voice as Weatherby Swann looked on.

"She was singing about pirates! It's bad luck to sing about pirates with us mired in this unnatural fog. Mark my words." Gibbs said. James smiled dryly and sent him on his way. "It's bad luck to have women on board, even two miniature ones." Gibbs muttered and Catherine stuck out her tongue at that. " _Catherine_." Her father scolded her and she immediately lowered her head and apologised to him. 

"I think it'd be rather exciting to meet a pirate." Elizabeth said, putting one of her hands on top of her sister's. Catherine looked down at her for that. "Elizabeth, we talked about this." She whispered as James joined them. "Think again, Ms. Swann. Vile and dissolute creatures, the lot of them. I intend to see to it that any man who sails under a pirate flag or wears a pirate brand gets what he deserves. A short drop and a sudden stop." He said. 

Elizabeth glanced at Gibbs, who mimed getting hanged and gasped as Catherine winced, having already figured out what he meant with that. Weatherby quickly interrupted the conversation as he saw Elizabeth's distressed face. James quickly left with an apology and the governor soon left again as well. Elizabeth then turned to her sister with a worried look. "Did you sleep?" She asked. "For a couple of hours, yes." Catherine answered with a small smile, stroking her sister's cheek in an affectionate manner. 

"Did you have the same dream again?" Elizabeth asked in concern. "Not this time, fortunately, but we both know it will be back." Catherine answered with a small, defeated sigh. For as long as Elizabeth could remember, her older sister had the same nightmare every once in a while. It always consisted out of a cursed ship clouded in mist and living skeletons as well as other things she couldn't understand

Many doctors had come and go, but none of them had been able to help the thirteen year old. Some had considered sending her to the madhouse, but their father didn't want to hear of it. Deciding to change the subject, Catherine gave her sister a nudge. "Come along, little swan. Let's see if we can find any fish in the water." She said. Elizabeth immediately went to the railing and peered down, her sister following. 

To their confusion, they saw an umbrella floating past the ship. Looking ahead, Elizabeth was alarmed to see a boy lying on a piece of driftwood. She quickly alerted the others and the boy was immediately taken on board. Catherine kept her sister close as they nervously watched from the sidelines. "He's still breathing." James said after quickly examining the boy, but Gibbs was watching something else entirely as he let out a curse. The others turned and saw a ship completely destroyed and burning, the boy clearly being the only survivor.

"What happened here?" Weatherby asked, one hand on each of his daughter's shoulders as they watched the burning ship, Catherine holding her sister to the chest at seeing the wreckage. "Most likely the powder magazine. Merchant vessels are heavily armed." James guessed. "Lot of good it did them. Everyone's thinking it, I'm saying it. Pirates." Gibbs said and Weatherby chuckled nervously, even as his grip on his daughters tightened.

"There's no proof of that. It was probably an accident." He said as Elizabeth broke from his grip and walked towards the unconscious boy, Catherine watching her. As men were sent to look for survivors, Weatherby told Elizabeth to take care of the boy and Catherine to look after them both. The elder daughter shared a worried look with her father as she quickly followed her sister while one of the long boats was lowered. 

As Elizabeth stroked the boy's cheek, the sisters jumped as he suddenly woke up with a gasp. "It's okay. My name is Elizabeth Swann and this is my sister Catherine." Elizabeth whispered, the boy telling them that his name was Will Turner, before losing consciousness again. Both girls were shocked to see him wearing a pirate medallion. "You're a pirate." Catherine whispered. "Has he said anything?" James asked, making both girls whirl around, hiding the medallion "His name is William Turner. That's all we found out." Elizabeth said quickly.

Nodding at that, James ordered the men to take Will below deck. Catherine walked towards her father. "What will happen to him now?" She asked him. "I'm sure we can find a place for him to live in Port Royal, my dear. Don't worry about it." Weatherby told her, gently rubbing her back.. No one noticed Elizabeth standing at the back of the ship, holding the medallion. Holding it up in front of her, she noticed something in the distance.

Looking up, she saw a ship with black sails and a pirate flag sail away. Her eyes widened as she recognised it from her sister's descriptions. The ship was real! She turned around to warn her sister, but couldn't find her. When she turned back, the ship had disappeared. She quickly ran below deck and jumped in her bed. Catherine had noticed her and immediately followed her. "Elizabeth? What is it?" She asked the shaking girl.

"I saw it, Catherine. I saw the ship of your dreams. It had black, ripped sails and was covered by this mist." Elizabeth whispered and Catherine stiffened up in shock. She hadn't told anyone about the sails being ripped, so the fact that her little sister knew about it, told her that Elizabeth really had seen it. She quickly pulled her sister closer and hugged her tightly. "It's alright, Elizabeth. We're safe. No one can harm us here." She whispered, despite the wreckage just short of their ship said otherwise. Finding no other survivors, the journey went on

Neither of the sisters talked about the ship after that, but they both quickly became friends with Will as they helped him recover from the accident/attack on his previous ride. Especially Elizabeth became very close to him as they were about the same age, Catherine watching over them both. It was good for her little sister to make a friend, but she also knew that it would be very hard to keep that friendship. 

They were the daughters of a governor and unless Will got lucky, he'd be stuck in a lower class position. With their father strict on protocol, Catherine wished her sister luck. After a few weeks, they arrived in the colony of Port Royal. As Catherine had expected, Will was put with the black smith, while the Swann family lived in a mansion. Years passed and the Swann sisters kept up their friendship with Will, much to their father's dismay.

Catherine started to pull back from those meetings as it was clear that her sister was beginning to develop feelings for him and she started to feel like a third wheel, but that never broke their bond. They never talked about the ghost ship again, even when Catherine's dreams kept coming. Still, seeing the black ghost ship was a moment that Elizabeth would always remember, until eight years later, when the Black Pearl came to Port royal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not entirely sure about this one, but we'll see. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time.


	2. Ceremonies and proposals

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

It had been eight years since the Swann family came to live in Port Royal and both the sisters had grown up. Elizabeth was still as stubborn as ever, giving her father grey hairs well before his time. Catherine, on the other hand, seemed every bit the perfect daughter in the eyes of everyone. No one knew that every once in a while, the older sister could be even worse in mischief than the younger one. She just hid it better 

Today was a very big day as captain James Norrington was about to be promoted to the rank of Commodore. This was what Catherine had been waiting for. In the past years, feelings had developed between her and the man, helped no doubt by Elizabeth's matchmaking attempts when the mischievous younger sister had quickly noticed her older sister's feelings about him. Catherine had returned the favour by inviting her and Will for tea and failing to show up herself, making the two realise they had been set up

Catherine's attempts had been rather less successful than her sister's as the two were held back by their social ranks, but she didn't give up and wouldn't until Elizabeth was courting Will. About a year ago, James had gone to the governor to ask for Catherine's hand in marriage. Weatherby had agreed as the marriage would give his daughter security. The only condition was that James had to rise one more rank.

James had immediately started to work even harder and it had paid off. The morning of the ceremony, a slightly frightened Catherine was woken up from her bad dream by her maid Eleanor and her father soon joined her after knocking and presented her with a new dress. Thanking him with a kiss, she quickly went to change, only to gasp as the corset tightened uncomfortably around her, the dream she had that night still fresh on her mind.

It hadn't been the ghost ship, but something no less scary. "Uhm, father. I'll be right out. Why don't you go see if Elizabeth's awake and present her dress to her?" She suggested and her father agreed, having no idea about his daughter's fears. As soon as he was gone, Catherine turned to Eleanor. "Loosen it, now!" She ordered in a hiss, surprising the maids. "But it's fashion, ma'am." Eleanor protested. "Well, I had a dream of someone falling into the sea with this kind of dress on, so forgive me if I value my life over fashion." Catherine answered shortly

The maids stiffened and quickly obeyed, finding a way to make it seem that it was laced up tight without making it too difficult to breathe. Once the dress was on, she went to find her father and sister. Her sister was already in her dress as well and was clearly having trouble breathing. "Go back inside and have my maids loosen it up." Catherine half ordered, half suggested, but her sister shook her head.

"I can handle it." She said stubbornly as they went down and saw Will standing with their father. Elizabeth happily greeted him. "I dreamt about you last night." She said as she and Catherine joined them, ignoring her father's protests about how it wasn't very proper. Catherine just let a small smirk show on her face as she saw Will stumble at seeing her sister. She really had to up her game before it was too late. 

They had to go to the fort and Elizabeth let a small scowl show on her face at seeing her sister's teasing smirk after she looked back at Will as the carriage started to drive from the mansion's grounds. "Do shut up." She said in a tone that was barely away from petulant. "I didn't say anything." Catherine immediately replied with a cheeky grin and her sister glared at her, before their father gently told them to behave. The rest of the carriage ride was silent as they were driven to the fort where the ceremony would be held. 

Once at the fort, the sisters had to stand to the side with the few other nobles of the town. The ceremony began and soldiers started to march in. Catherine gave her sister several worried glances as she seemed to have more and more trouble breathing. Despite it not being very proper, she touched Elizabeth's back in both support and worry. Elizabeth gave her a small smile to reassure her that she was alright. 

Catherine gave her an unconvinced look as James appeared and walked towards their father, getting a new sword that "Mr. Brown" had made. One look was enough to tell Catherine that it was one of Will's making. She knew his hand in swords well enough. The ceremony was incredibly long and boring and the elder Swann sister couldn't wait for it to be over, both for the proposal and for Elizabeth to be able to sit down or something. 

It was finally over and Catherine almost shoved her sister onto a chair. "Stay. Catch your breath." She ordered, before James gently asked to speak to her in private and she agreed. Walking away from the rest, they immediately smiled at each other. "You look beautiful, Catherine." He whispered as he gently pulled her closer to his body and she beamed at him. "You look very handsome as well, _commodore_." She replied, putting emphasis on the last word and he chuckled as she playfully straightened his hat.

"You know what this means, don't you?" He asked and she pretended to think. "I'm afraid that I can't recall, Mr. Norrington. Care to enlighten me?" She asked in a playful voice as Elizabeth and their father silently came around the corner to watch. He smiled as he grabbed her hand and sank to one knee. "Catherine Swann, will you make me the happiest man in the world by becoming my wife?" He asked formally.

She immediately smiled at him. "Of course, I will." She answered and he quickly stood up with a giant smile, before pulling her closer and kissing her with all that he had. A cough made them jump apart to see Elizabeth and Weatherby smiling at them. "That's quite enough. Do save some for the wedding." The governor said teasingly and the couple blushed in answer. Elizabeth happily gave her sister a hug. 

"Congratulations, Katie. I'm so happy for you. You really deserve each other." She whispered as she pulled back and her sister immediately beamed at her. "Thank you, Lizzie." She said, the sisters using their childhood nicknames for each other. Weatherby walked towards his daughters with a smile of his own. His daughter had found herself a fine husband, who would take care of her, who loved her and who she loved in return. He hoped that they would be happy together.He hugged Catherine tightly and kissed her temple as he congratulated her as well.

They returned to the others and the announcement was made. Many of the nobles agreed that it was a fine match and several of James's colleagues patted him on the back, much to his fiancee's amusement. Once all the excitement had settled down, Elizabeth took James towards the edge of the fort to tell him to take good care of Catherine. The woman in question watched them for a second, before she was distracted by her father.

"Very exciting day, isn't it?" He asked and she nodded, before yawning. "Did you sleep well?" Her father asked in concern. "I did have trouble falling asleep, so I went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. I spend an hour or so reading a book, before going back to bed." She answered and he nodded in understanding. "I thought I heard footsteps." He said and she chuckled, before they heard a scream that made their blood freeze. 

" _ELIZABETH!!!!!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Eleanor was originally Catherine's name, before I decided it was a bit weird to have a name slightly similar to Elizabeth and changed it.
> 
> I hate Love-triangles, so don't expect one in this story. 
> 
> https://nl.pinterest.com/pin/776308054508279094/ (Catherine's dress)
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	3. Pirates!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise

They ran to where James and Elizabeth had been standing. It was only James now as Elizabeth had fainted and fallen off the wall. "Catherine, stay here! We'll go and find her." James ordered as he and the men ran away. Catherine didn't listen and went to follow them after throwing off her shoes, grabbing something from a soldier, ignoring his protests. There was no way that she was going to stay back when her sister was in danger.

In the meantime as the soldiers were running, captain Jack Sparrow, who had arrived in Port Royal just that morning on a sinking ship and had been talking to two soldiers, had managed to get Elizabeth from the bottom of the sea, but not before the pirate medallion she wore around her neck had given off some kind of signal, making the wind change and blow. The two soldiers quickly helped Jack get Elizabeth back on land. "She's not breathing!" One shouted, before Jack cut and ripped open her corset, making her gasp and cough up water.

"Never would've thought of that." The soldier admitted. "Clearly, you've never been to Singapore." Jack said, before James and the others arrived, the former pointing his sword at the pirate. Weatherby quickly helped up his youngest daughter. He ordered the soldiers to shoot Jack, but Elizabeth protested as he had saved her life. Finding out that he was a pirate by the brand on his arm and inspecting his things, James ordered Jack to be chained.

"Commodore, I really must protest. Pirate or not, this man saved my life." Elizabeth said, standing with her back towards Jack. James protested that one good deed didn't excuse a lifetime of bad deeds. Just as Jack was chained, he immediately used them to take Elizabeth hostage with his gun, even though he wouldn't use the bullet on her, but the men in front of him didn't know that.

He ordered James to give him his things back and Elizabeth to put them on as he smirked at the men. Once Elizabeth was done, he was about to give a final one-liner about how they had almost caught him, before there was the loud sound of a gunshot going through the air. Everyone flinched and Elizabeth took that opportunity to escape and run into her father's arms. Forced to improvise, Jack quickly escaped, running into town while being shot at. He didn't notice the pair of gray eyes glaring as their owner ran towards their family. 

"Elizabeth! Are you alright?" Catherine asked in absolute worry as she hugged her sister. "Yes. I'm fine." Elizabeth answered shakily as she hugged Catherine back, before their father noticed something and his eyes widened in shock. "Good heavens, Catherine! Is that a gun?!" He asked softly, but sternly as he glared at the weapon in his daughter's hand. "Maybe." Catherine answered sheepishly.

"You fired a gun?" Elizabeth asked in complete shock. "At the air. I fired a gun at the air and it worked, didn't it? You escaped." Catherine defended herself. Weatherby sighed deeply. "Well, because no one got hurt and you had good reasons, I'll allow it for this one time. But I never want to see a gun in your hands again, understood?" He asked sternly and Catherine immediately nodded in answer.

"Who even taught you?" Elizabeth asked. "Lieutenant Gillette. Although, he may have been slightly drunk at the time." Catherine answered. "I'll talk to him about it." Weatherby said. James returned with an unconscious Jack. Apparently, Mr. Brown had knocked him out, but Catherine and Elizabeth doubted that as the man barely did anything. "Will probably held him up and Mr. Brown knocked him out at the very end." Catherine softly murmured to her sister and Elizabeth immediately agreed with that option

Like Weatherby, James wasn't very happy to see his new fiancee with a gun, but because she had only done it to save her sister, he let it go. "Never do that again, understood?" He asked sternly and she nodded as she kissed his cheek. He let a small smile grow on his face, before he escorted the Swann family back to their mansion. After dinner, Weatherby was about to go back to the fort, when Catherine wanted to join him.

"Catherine, don't you want to go to sleep?" He asked and she immediately shook her head. "I already know I won't be able to sleep now after everything. I'm far too excited." She answered and he sighed, knowing her well enough that she wouldn't give up until he let her come with him. "Very well, but when we get back, you'll immediately go to sleep, understood?" He asked and she happily nodded.

"Elizabeth, do you want to come too?" Catherine asked, but her younger sister shook her head. "I think I'm actually going to try to sleep. I'll see you both tomorrow." She answered with a warm smile, kissing them both on their cheek. "Alright. Love you lots." Catherine said, a habit from when they were young. "Love you more." Elizabeth answered as they walked out. "Don't stay up all night reading." Catherine said just as they walked out and she heard her sister laugh in reply. She smiled, not knowing that it would be the last time she'd see her sister in a while. 

James was incredibly surprised to see Catherine there, but understood her reasoning. He tucked her arm into the crook of his elbow as they walked around the fort's edge. Catherine held his arm tightly, her fear of heights slightly rearing its head at hearing the sea many, many miles below them. James immediately gave her hand a reassuring squeeze at noticing it. "I'm here, Catherine. Nothing will harm you." He whispered. 

She gave him a small smile, before giving their surroundings a look. It had been a lovely day before, but mist had suddenly settled in, giving the fort and town a creepy atmosphere. James and her father talked with each other as they walked along. "Well, I guess that we can call you part of the family soon enough." Weatherby said teasingly and Catherine immediately blushed as her fiance and father chuckled.

"Ghastly weather, isn't it?" Weatherby asked and Catherine silently agreed as she tightened her grip on James's arm. She had a really bad feeling about this. "Bleak. Very bleak." James agreed as he subconsciously tightened his grip on his fiancee as well. A low boom was heard in the distance and Catherine immediately looked at the sea, seeing something come towards them. "James!" She hissed in fear and James looked up as well, seeing the same thing. "What was that?" Weatherby asked, not having noticed anything. 

Pulling Catherine with him, James quickly tackled his future father-in-law to the ground and out of the line of fire. "Cannon fire!" He shouted as he and Weatherby instinctively shielded Catherine and a piece of the wall exploded. Catherine let out a scream of fear as they hit the ground. "Return fire!" James ordered as soldiers quickly ran in. He briefly looked at his fiancee. "Stay with your father." He ordered and she nodded.

He briefly squeezed her hand, before he left to shout orders. Weatherby wrapped his arms around his daughter and held her close as the battle began in full earnest. James finally ordered them to hide in his office. The governor quickly pulled Catherine with him, the woman looking back to see James give her a small nod and a smile, before he returned to the battle. She hoped that it wouldn't be the last time she saw him. 

Hiding in James's office, father and daughter held each other tightly as they heard screams from the town. Catherine covered her ears and sank to her knees. It was their job to keep them safe and they were screaming and dying. Weatherby kneeled down next to her and held her close to him. "Father, I'm worried about Elizabeth." She said after a while. "I'm sure she's fine." Her father said, not knowing that his youngest daughter was being taken to the pirate ship that very moment. The battle seemed to go on for hours, but was actually over rather quickly.

James came to get them and immediately had to catch Catherine as she ran into his arms. "I'm here, Catherine. I'm here." He whispered as he stroked her hair. He was about to say something else, when Elizabeth's maid Estrella arrived in panic. "Governor! It's Elizabeth! She's been taken!" She shouted. It was the last thing Catherine heard, before her vision went blank and she fainted, James barely managing to catch her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really know exactly how far the fort was from where Jack briefly kept Elizabeth hostage, but let's pretend it wasn't that far and running with a dress slowed Catherine down. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time.


	4. Desperate times call for desperate measures

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

Will woke up right on the street, having been knocked out by one of the pirates during the invasion. He immediately remembered having seen Elizabeth being taken by the pirates and ran towards the fort. He quickly found where James, Weatherby and Catherine were. The former looking over several maps and the latter sitting on a chair, looking utterly defeated with red eyes. The governor had a hand on her shoulder. 

"There've taken her! They've taken Elizabeth!" Will said in complete panic. "We know." Catherine muttered as James ordered a soldier to remove Will, briefly grabbing and squeezing her hand at hearing her voice. It was one of the first things she had said since waking up after fainting. Hearing that your sister was kidnapped by the most vile men walking the earth, was news that nobody ever wanted to get. Weatherby squeezed her shoulder as well as Will ripped himself free from the soldier. 

"We have to hunt them down! We must save her!" He insisted. "And where do you propose we start?" Weatherby asked, his eyes as red as Catherine's. His daughter had been taken right under his nose and he couldn't do anything to help her. He had no idea where she was or where to start looking. He kept a tight hold onto his eldest daughter, relieved that the pirates hadn't been able to take her as well. 

"If you have any information about my youngest daughter, please share it." He continued, before looking away. The two soldiers from the day before suddenly mentioned that Jack Sparrow had talked about the _Black Pearl_ before Elizabeth had fainted. Catherine briefly looked up at this, before looking down again. She bit her lip, deep in thought and weighing pros and cons about something. 

"Ask him where it is. Make a deal with him. He could lead us there." Will suggested, willing to do anything to get Elizabeth back. "No. The pirates who invaded this fort left Sparrow in his cell. Ergo, they are not allies." James dismissed, Catherine looking up again, before offering a course of action. Will angrily slammed an axe into the table, startling the woman. "That's not good enough!" He shouted. Having had enough, James took him aside. "Mr. Turner. You are not a military man. You are not a sailor." He started, unaware of his fiancee watching them. 

"You are a blacksmith and this is not the time for rash actions. Don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only person who cares for Elizabeth." He continued in a softer tone as he took the younger man aside, before returning to the maps. Will glared at him, before starting to leave. Catherine gulped as she made a decision, briefly glancing at her father and fiancee, silently apologising for what she was going to do. 

"Will, wait!" She called loudly as she stood up and the man immediately turned around in confusion. She turned to her father and James. "Do you mind if Will escorts me home? Staying here just makes me feel more helpless and restless with the minute and this way, I have a familiar face with me without you missing any soldiers." She suggested, keeping her voice calm and polite. 

Weatherby sighed deeply, reluctant to let his oldest daughter out of his sight, but knowing very well that she had a good point about both things. "Well, alright. But you stay there until I get home, understood?" He asked sternly and she immediately nodded in answer, not trusting her voice not to give her away. Kissing them both on their cheeks, she quickly left with Will. "What are you-?" Will started to say, before Catherine quickly shushed him. "Not now." She whispered as they walked out of the fort 

Walking past the harbour, Catherine suddenly stopped walking and forced Will to do the same. "Do you see that stone bridge?" She asked in a soft tone and he immediately nodded. "Once you've brought me home, break Sparrow out of prison and meet me under there in half an hour." She whispered, Will giving her a shocked look at realizing what she was saying. 

"But the governor and the commodore-" He started, before she interrupted him again. "By the time they get to her, it will probably be too late. They are forced to keep themselves to the rules. We need someone who doesn't." She replied and he took a deep breath before reluctantly agreeing with her. "It will be very dangerous." He warned and she immediately nodded. 

"I know. Luckily, I've had a very good swordsman teacher." She replied, grinning at the man next to her and he grinned back. He hadn't been lying to Jack the day before. He really did practice three hours a day. It was just that one day, every two weeks, Catherine joined him for said practice on a random day so that her father and now fiance wouldn't notice. Only Eleanor and Elizabeth knew, the former helping and the latter having caught her sister sneaking back in after a session. She had been very jealous

Once they were at the mansion, they gave each other a nod as Will ran down the lawn and Catherine ran upstairs. "Eleanor, change! Now!" She ordered as she ran into her room. "Now? But miss, now is not the time for practice. Your sister has been taken." Eleanor protested, only to flinch at Catherine's glare. "I know that. Will and I are going to try and get her back." She said as she started to tie her hair in a knot. 

"But miss! Your father and the commodore-" Eleanor started with a small gasp, before Catherine interrupted once again, noting how this was already the third time in just a few short minutes. "They can scold, lecture and punish me when we get back. Or when we're all dead, I really don't care." She said as she opened a secret compartment in her closet.

A kitchen boy's clothes were waiting for her. Eleanor kept trying to convince her not to do it, even as she helped her mistress out of her dress and helped her bind her chest, but Catherine's mind was set. Once she was in the clothes, she crawled underneath her bed and got a smaller sword from underneath her mattress, hidden in a cane. Hugging Eleanor tightly and telling her not to say a word, she quickly left the room and ran down the stairs and out of the doors, not even looking back in fear of getting cold feet. 

She ran to the bit of beach underneath the stone bridge and didn't have to wait long, before Will and Jack arrived. "Catherine?" Will asked to be certain and she gave him a small smile. "Catherine? You're a woman?" Jack asked in confusion. "Yes, I am." She answered shortly, before slapping him in the face, Will letting out a chuckle. "That was for threatening my sister." She growled. 

"Ah. Understood, ma'am." Jack said with a grin, before they got over to business. Jack told them that they were going to steal _The Interceptor_ by pretending to steal _The Dauntless._ Catherine winced at that, knowing that James was going to hate her for that. Jack asked exactly how far Will was willing to go for Elizabeth. "I'd die for her." Will immediately replied. "Yes, you don't love each other at all, do you?" Catherine asked and Will blushed.

Managing to walk underwater by trapping air underneath a long boat, Will commented that it was either madness or brilliance. "It's funny, how those two often coincide." Jack replied. Will rolled his eyes, before looking back at Catherine, the woman having to kick her feet as she couldn't reach the floor. "Are you alright?" He asked. "I'm still with you, aren't I?" She asked with a small grin and he smiled back at her, before looking down as his foot got stuck in a crate. Giving up on trying to shake it off, they continued on. 

Using the crate and the rope to dismantle the rudder, they climbed up the back of the ship, Will having to help Catherine a tiny bit until the lowest balcony on the backside. She decided to stop there, not only because of her fear of heights was already rearing its head, but also because she had heard lieutenant Gillette give orders on the main deck.

Disguised or not, there was absolutely no way he wouldn't recognise her and either bring her back to land or inform James of her involvement. The lower balcony belonged to James's office and knowing that he never locked the door when T _he Dauntless_ was in port and that the men were forbidden to enter without him being there, Catherine quietly went in as soon as she heard Jack make a ruckus on deck. 

Said pirate and Will managed to make Gillette and the other men surrender by bluffing his way out. As soon as Gillette had left, the men kept up a pretense of trying to start the ship, knowing that the man would warn the others as soon as he could. It worked as _The Interceptor_ soon sailed out to catch them. Will quickly knocked on the right door. "They're coming." He said as Catherine walked out of the office, immediately frowning in concern at seeing her teary eyes, but she waved him off as they got ready. 

_The interceptor_ stopped right next to their ship and James and other soldiers immediately climbed on board, not noticing the three people swinging to the smaller ship while they were distracted. Catherine was extremely reluctant to do this as her fear of heights was showing itself full time, until Will told her to hang onto him and swung over with her. 

Catherine immediately dived to the floor next to the helm as Jack went behind the helm and Will cut off all the ropes to prevent the soldiers from following them and setting the ship free. By the time James noticed what was happening, it was too late and he could only watch as Jack sailed away with the ship. The pirate couldn't help but rub it in a bit.

"Thank you, commodore, for making us ready to make way! We'd have had a hard time by ourselves." He called loudly, waving his hat towards the soldiers. "Jack, don't rub it in." Catherine hissed from her hiding spot as soldiers shot at the two men they could see, Will immediately ducking for cover as well. Making a decision, he would've regretted if it had worked, James ordered his men to turn the ship slightly and get ready to shoot with cannons. "We're firing at our own ship, sir?" One of his men asked hesitantly

"I'd rather see her at the bottom of the ocean than in the hands of a pirate." James said, not knowing that he was technically planning to kill his own fiancee. Luckily, they were unable to turn the ship, almost sailing over Gillette and his men in the row boat they had been forced to leave in. James hung his head in defeat, before grabbing a telescope and looking at the ship sailing away.

To his surprise, he saw three people standing on deck instead of two. Tbe third unknown one turned their head and James stiffened in shock. Even while hiding underneath a hat, he recognised those features. He quickly ran down towards his office and found a piece of parchment lying on his desk. With trembling hands, he picked it up and started to read. 

_My dearest James,_

_By the time you read this, I'll hopefully be gone with Will and Sparrow to get Elizabeth back from those wretched pirates. It hurts me more than I can say to betray you and father by going around your backs like this, but it has to be done to save her._ _I hope that our mission is a success and that you will find it in your heart to forgive me whether I survive or not._

 _If I die on this dangerous mission, then I'll die happily, knowing that I had you and your love in my short life and that I died trying to_ _save someone I love more than anything (except for you). If I die soon, then I'll watch over you from above, until you finally manage to find your way back to me, I promise. I'm so sorry, my darling. I hope that we will meet again soon._

_Love now and always,_

_Your Catherine._

_P.S. Don't worry, the damage to the rudder is fixable. Sparrow wanted to destroy it completely, but Will and I managed to convince him otherwise_

James let out a sound of misery as he sank onto his chair. His Catherine had gone with a infamous, dangerous pirate to get Elizabeth back. Wasn't she aware of the many dangers? He closed his eyes in despair at realising he had almost killed her with the cannons. How was he going to explain this to the governor? He looked back at the letter and whispered one thing

"Catherine, what have you done?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This became a lot bigger than I had expected, but here we go. 
> 
> Not sure when the next update will be as i have other stories to update. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	5. Tortuga

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

Catherine took a very deep breath to calm herself down as the boat sailed further away from her home, wondering if James had found the letter she'd written and had left on his office already. She knew that it would absolutely break his heart and that she was in so much trouble if they survived this, but she wouldn't ever regret it if they managed to save Elizabeth. 

Will was telling Jack about his past, Catherine obviously already knowing it. He mentioned that Jack had only agreed to help at hearing his last name and asked the pirate if he had known the missing man. Jack revealed that he had been a pirate, but Will didn't believe him, pointing his sword at him. "Will, I really shouldn't do that if I were you." Catherine warned, just before Jack moved the helm in such a way that the mast knocked her good friend off his feet and let him dangle in the air above the sea.

Catherine started to walk forwards to help him, but Jack stopped her. "Hang on a minute, lass." He said, before giving Will an ultimatum: accept that his father was a pirate and accept orders from one or fall into the sea and drown. Will reluctantly chose to accept the conditions and Jack let him back on the ship, Catherine quickly helped him up. 

"What about you, ms Swann? You think a lady can take orders from a pirate?" Jack asked and Catherine immediately gave him a scowl in response. "Until we've got my sister back and we're safe in Port Royal. After that, I hope we'll never see each other again." She said and he conceded. "I can live with that. Now, let's sail to Tortuga." He said in a jovial tone.

In the meantime, Elizabeth had been invited to dine with Captain Barbossa. At first, she ate politely as she had been taught, before getting permission and tearing into a piece of meat. She hesitated when the man offered her an apple, thinking it was poisoned. The captain told her that killing her wouldn't make sense yet, before talking about the medallion and the curse that apparently lied on it. "I don't believe in ghost stories anymore." She said, despite being on the ship her sister had always dreamt of. 

She hadn't seen skeletons yet, so she vainly hoped that it wasn't this ship after all. Barbossa told her that they had once thought the same thing, until they had been cursed themselves. When he was distracted, she hid a knife in her napkin. The captain continued by telling her that the only way to break the curse was to bring all the pieces back and pay a blood sacrifice, horrifying her

She tried to escape from the room, stabbing him with the knife.... only for it to have no effect. "I'm curious, if you had killed me, what would you have done next?" Barbossa asked sadistically. Elizabeth ran outside to flee from him, only to see the same thing her sister had dreamt off all these years. Living skeletons everywhere as the cursed crew moved around.

She was thrown around by the crew for a bit, before meeting Barbossa again in the shadow. "You better start believing in ghost stories, Ms Turner. You're in one." The cursed captain said, slowly stepping into the blue moonlight to reveal his own skeleton form and using the name Elizabeth had given them in the belief they'd want her as one of the governor's daughters. She stared in horror and ran inside, hiding in a corner. She promised herself never to underestimate her sister again. She wished the older woman was here right now

Little did she know that Catherine was on her way, having arrived at Tortuga to get a crew. She stuck close to Will and looked around at the filthy town in disgust. Sure, Port Royal reeked too because of the faulty sewer system, but nothing like this. Will wrapped a friendly arm around her to keep her from getting separated as Jack explained a bit about the place. 

That was, until he was slapped by two prostitutes, making Catherine laugh at that. "Nice one!" She called after the second one, who turned back and winked at her. Jack scowled at her, but she ignored it. They continued on, until they found a familiar face: Mr. Gibbs. The last thing Catherine had heard from him, he had been fired for associating with pirates. _Oh, the irony...._

Jack woke up the sleeping man by throwing a bucket of water over him. He let out a stream of curses, before seeing that it was Jack. The cunning pirate managed to convince him that it wasn't bad luck to wake him up and helped him back on his feet, before Will threw another bucket of water over him. "Blast it, I'm already awake!" Gibbs shouted. "That was for the smell." Will said, making Catherine laugh loudly, pulling the man's attention and he stared at her in shock. "Lord. Ms. Swann, is that you?" He asked

"I'm surprised that you recognise me, Mr. Gibbs. After all, it's been years since we last saw each other." Catherine replied with a light smile, briefly putting on the persona of the governor's daughter once again, before dropping it. "What are you doing here?" Gibbs asked, still unable to believe the cross-dressing woman in front of him was the same girl who had once scolded him for scaring her sister. 

"Elizabeth was taken by pirates. Will and I want to get her back home and roped Sparrow into it as we need a professional pirate. Something I never thought I'd say." She admitted, making Jack grin. "Which pirates?" Gibbs asked as he took a swig from his flask. "The crew of _The Black Pearl."_ Catherine answered, grinning herself when Gibbs choked on his drink. "Ms. Swann. That's a suicide mission." He whispered.

"Let's talk further over a drink." Jack quickly said, before they could continue. They walked towards a busy, loud bar and Catherine immediately turned around at the overwhelming stench, walking back outside. Will quickly followed her, but she told him that she'd be fine. He went back inside and she took a deep breath as she looked around the town, her hand on her small sword at all times. Will had made it for her as a favour, having made it so it would work and fit with her smaller and slimmer frame.

He had said that she could upgrade to a bigger sword, but then this situation happened and she had to do with the smaller one for now. A sound of metal against metal made her look down at the ring around her finger. James had given it to her when she had returned to the fort with her father to complete the proposal. She reluctantly pulled it off and put it in her breastpocket to hide it from the many thieves that were most certainly lurking around.

She bit her lip as she thought of her fiance. This was the first time she had gone behind his and her father's back. What was he doing now? Was he on his way? Would he forgive her? She didn't know and she hated not knowing. "Catherine, we're done. Let's go." Will's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she quickly followed him and Jack as they found a place to sleep. Her worries would have to wait for tomorrow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A smaller chapter, but I really wanted to write. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time.


	6. Getting Elizabeth back

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise

James was on _The Dauntless_ with Weatherby and his men. The governor had been completely appalled that his oldest daughter had gone behind his back and run away to look for Elizabeth with a _pirate_ of all this, no matter what her reason was. He had insisted to join James on the search for the missing women, not wanting to stay behind, unable to concentrate on his duties with his worries. 

Unknown to the governor or all his men, James still had Catherine's final letter with him, having taken it with him once the ship was ready. Every night, when he was forced to go to sleep by his lieutenants and the governor, he'd read it again and again. Despite his anger and hurt about her actions, he hoped that this wouldn't be the last thing she'd send him. He still loved her and he wanted her back with him, safe and sound with Elizabeth. Even though he knew it was impossible, he wanted everything to go back the way things were.

He was so worried about her that he could barely keep his composure in front of his men during the day and his nights were restless as he always woke up drenched in sweat after an entirely new nightmare. It was always the same: that he'd be too late and Catherine would be dead. Either, she'd be floating lifeless in the water or a pirate would hold her hostage and kill her before he could save her

It drove him mad with each passing hour that they hadn't found her. Even the governor was noticing it and he was just as worried as he was. He hated the fact that Catherine could turn him into this mess, but that didn't stop his heart from speeding up during the rare good dreams where they found her, Elizabeth and even Turner in time. James sighed and lied down, closing his eyes and falling asleep with the letter clutched to his chest. 

On Tortuga, Catherine, Will and Jack were inspecting the recruits that Gibbs had managed to get. Catherine rubbed her eyes as she fought to stay awake. Last night, she had slept in an inn as Jack hadn't wanted to row back-and-forth. She should've insisted as room at the inn was disgusting. She couldn't wait to take a nap on _The Interceptor._ At least, the bed in the captain's quarters actually had a mattress. One of the recruits turned out to be a woman, who promptly slapped Jack."Very popular with the ladies, I see." Catherine said sarcastically.

It turned out that Jack had stolen her ship and Will quickly offered their ship instead. Catherine bit her lip at that. James was not going to be happy with that. Then again, he probably wasn't going to be happy with the entire situation. As everyone got ready to get on board, Gibbs warned Jack not to take one, let alone two women on board, but Jack dismissed him. Once on board, Catherine immediately went to bed.

She got a few short hours on sleep, before the ship lurched and she almost fell out of bed. Going to see what was going on, she saw that they were in the middle of a storm. Will saw her and quickly ordered her to go back inside as this storm was too dangerous. She reluctantly obeyed as she wanted to help them. Sitting at the edge of the bed, she hoped that the storm would be over soon.

The storm unfortunately lasted through the night and when it finally let up, their surroundings were just as bleak with thick fog everywhere. Catherine was pretty sure she saw at least four shipwrecks in the water and who knew how many more there were. Gibbs said the same thing, before accidentally telling her and Will that Jack had once been the captain of the ship they were chasing at the very moment. He also told them that Jack's former First Mate, Barbossa, had planned a mutiny and had dumped Jack on a deserted island. 

According to the stories, Jack had escaped by binding sea turtles together and escaping like that, but Catherine really doubted that. That was probably the story he told everyone, so she asked one simple question. "What did he use for rope?" She asked, stunning Gibbs into silence. None of them had noticed Jack himself arriving and he told them that he had used the hair from his back. "Forget I asked." Catherine said with disgust. 

Jack grinned at her, before giving a few orders and preparing to leave with Will. Catherine gave her old friend a tight hug. "Bring her back, please." She whispered as he hugged her back. "Of course." He whispered, before he left . "Tell me, Catherine: why did you ask Jack's help?" Gibbs asked. "My father and James can only guess what the pirates are thinking or their next course of action, Jack doesn't." She replied simply. 

He nodded in understanding at that. The next few minutes were absolutely nerve-wracking for the older sister as she paced the deck, before going below deck and pacing there after noticing the irritated looks.In the meantime, Will and Jack had arrived to see Elizabeth being surrounded by pirates. Barbossa gave a grand speech about how they didn't deserve to be cursed. Jack told Will to wait for the right moment, but he realised that Jack wanted to use him for his own uses and knocked him out with an oar.

"Sorry, Jack. I'm not gonna be your leverage and I have a promise to keep." He said, before making his own plan. Barbossa cut Elizabeth's hand while she was holding the medallion, only for it not to work as she wasn't the right person. Angered, Barbossa backhanded her, knocking her down the small hill with the medallion. While the pirates were arguing, Will managed to sneak up the unconscious Elizabeth through the water.

Waking her up, he silently told her to follow and she did after grabbing the medallion. Unfortunately, they were spotted by Barbossa's monkey, who loudly warned the others. Taking the oars from the other boats and dropping them into the water on the way back, Will and Elizabeth climbed _The Interceptor._ Elizabeth stiffened at seeing the unfamiliar faces. "No more pirates." She muttered

She was surprised by Gibbs stepping forwards and even more surprised when he asked after Jack. "He fell behind." Will said, Jack having explained that anyone who stayed behind, was left behind. He quickly pulled Elizabeth below deck after glancing at the others on deck and not seeing Catherine. Even on the stairs, he could hear worried footsteps pacing back-and-forth again and again. "I got her!" He called and there was a sigh of relief. Elizabeth gave him a funny look, until what she thought was an unfamiliar man walked towards them.

He was looking down so that his hat was hiding their face. "Who are you?" She asked, clutching onto Will. The clothing looked familiar, but her brain didn't want to tell her from where. "I'm the one whose idea this was, sweetheart." The person said in a very low tone. She frowned at that, but even more at hearing Will sigh deeply. "Must you tease her? She's had a very terrifying past few days and she's injured." He said.

The other person's head flew up at that. Elizabeth stared and her jaw fell at seeing her older sister standing there, dressed in the clothes of a kitchen boy. "Injured? Where?" Catherine asked, immediately dropping the act. Will gently showed her Elizabeth's cut hand. "Okay. I believe there are bandages around here somewhere." She muttered to herself as she quickly started to look around the room.

" _Catherine!?_ What are you doing here?" Elizabeth finally asked after a few seconds "What? My sister gets kidnapped by pirates and you think I'm going to just sit there and do nothing about it." The older sister asked sarcastically. Tears appeared in Elizabeth's eyes. It had been one thing to see that Will had come for her However, seeing that her sister, normally the calm one who always seemed the perfect lady, had thrown the safety of Port Royal away to come looking for her, even if there was a chance she wouldn't survive, made her feel like crying.

"Does James and father know?" She asked. "They most certainly do now." Catherine replied flippantly as she returned with bandages, only to be very surprised as her younger sister suddenly hugged her out of nowhere and started to cry, her injured hand gently curled so she wouldn't bleed on her sister's clothes. Catherine smiled and hugged her sister back, kissing the woman's temple.

"You were right. About the ship and skeletons. About verything" Elizabeth sobbed. "I know, little swan." Catherine replied in a soft tone as she stroked her sister's back to try and comfort her after the past few days. She was so relieved to have her back with her safe and sound. Now they just needed to escape this place and the pirates. Something told her that it wouldn't be a very easy job

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure when I'll update next. I'm not feeling well and with everything going on, let's hope that it's just the common cold. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	7. Battle against the undead

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

It took several minutes for the sisters to separate and when they finally did, they still kept physical contact as Elizabeth rubbed her red eyes to get rid of the remaining tears, chuckling a bit at truly realising that her big sister was there.... dressed as a guy. "The clothes suit you." She said. "Oh, shut up." Catherine muttered and Elizabeth laughed, relieved to be back with her and Will, despite the danger not being over yet. 

Catherine saw the looks and glances between her sister and friend, smirking as she got an idea. "Will, do you think you could bandage Elizabeth's hand? I've never been good at that." She said, both people immediately blushing. "Uhm, sure. I can do that." Will said, stumbling a bit as he took the bandages over. "I'll go and see what the situation on deck is." Catherine told them, before quickly leaving. Will and Elizabeth could barely protest before she was gone. "She did it again." Elizabeth muttered, before Will went to clean and bandage her wound. 

On deck, Catherine saw that they had already left the creepy, misty surroundings of the cursed island and were now sailing into the full sun. She looked up and soaked in the sunrays for a second. Elizabeth was safe, but she wouldn't cheer until they were back in Port Royal and would never see that cursed pirate crew again. A shiver ran down her spine as she realised Barbossa and his crew now knew the way.

They had to be even more careful, if they made it so far. Her blood froze at the thought of James having to fight the pirates and getting killed by them. She really hoped that it wouldn't come that far. The went to the back of the ship and leaned on the railing and took a breath as she tried to calm herself down. For several minutes, it was actually very peaceful as the only sound was the water, the men talking and a parrot of one of the men

She looked down at the water for a minute, before looking up and immediately stiffening. Mist slowly appeared at the far horizon, a black spot right in the middle of it. "Mr. Gibbs!" She called over her shoulder, the man quickly appearing at her side and seeing the same thing. "Good lord. It's the _Pearl._ " He whispered, before quickly walking back and starting to give orders to try and keep ahead of the cursed ship. This was what Elizabeth walked in on after her conversation with Will didn't go right. Men were hurrying back-and-forth as Gibbs gave orders. 

"What's happening?" She asked. _"The Black Pearl._ She's gaining on us." Catherine shouted back as she did her best to help as much as she could. Elizabeth looked out and saw the cursed ship a lot closer that it had been before. "This is the fastest ship in the Caribbean." She protested. "You can tell them that after they've caught us." Anamaria, the woman who slapped Jack in Tortuga, said sarcastically.

Catherine glared at her, despite knowing that she was most likely right. Elizabeth quickly came up with an idea. They were lighter, so perhaps they could lose the ship on the shoals that were slightly in the distance. Gibbs and Anamaria quickly gave the order to throw everything they didn't need into the ocean. Catherine and Elizabeth helped as much as they could, throwing barrels into the water. 

"Remind me that if we survive this whole ordeal, I'll buy James new supplies." Catherine said as they threw a new barrel of probably expensive supplies into the water. "Will do." Elizabeth answered with a grim look on her face. Despite their best efforts, the _Pearl_ still came closer to them and was about to catch up to them. "It was a good plan, until now." Anamaria said as Will joined them again. "Gibbs, we have to make a stand! We must fight! Load the guns!" He said loudly. "With what?" Both Anamaria and Catherine asked at the same time.

"Anything! Everything! Anything we have left!" Will said desperately. Gibbs quickly gave the order to fill the cannons with silverware, rusted nails, crushed glass and other things. When the _Pearl_ got really close and seemed to be ready to rake them on their port/left quarter, Elizabeth got a crazy idea to throw the anchor out on the starboard/ right side of the ship. When Will agreed with her, Catherine gave them a look. 

"You are insane!" She said just as Anamaria called them daft. Gibbs agreed with the not-yet couple though and gave the order, threatening to throw the men into the cannons when they hesitated to obey. "At this rate, I'm going to need to buy him a new ship." Catherine muttered to herself as she quickly went to hold onto something. The ship made an incredibly sharp turn, almost knocking them off their feet. 

The _Pearl_ barely managed to avoid them by harshly turning left, resulting in the two ships finally crossing each other, cannons ready to fire. "Now!" Will shouted. Fire all!" Both Catherine and Elizabeth screamed, just as the former heard a male voice shouting the same order. The next few minutes were a mess of loud explosions and sounds as they shot at each other. Catherine instinctively covered her ears as she wondered how on earth pirates and navy men never got deaf from the noise. It certainly was deafening for her. 

Hiding behind the railing, they shot at the pirates with rifles, despite knowing it wouldn't help much. While Catherine did have training in using a sword, this was her first time shooting with rifles. She probably missed more shots than she hit, but she did her best. "We could use some more ideas, lass" Gibbs said. "It's your turn!" Elizabeth shouted over the noise. "We need us a devil's dowry." Gibbs replied.

"We'll give them her!" Anamaria said, pointing a gun as Elizabeth. Catherine immediately pulled her sword and held in against the other woman's neck from behind at seeing her point a gun at her sister. "Don't you dare." She hissed as Will said that she wasn't the one they were after. Elizabeth realised she wasn't wearing the medallion and Will quickly went to find it. Catherine put her sword back now that Elizabeth was in the clear.

Things went from bad to worse as the cursed pirates shot at the mast and made it fall down, before they boarded. Catherine immediately started to fight to the best of her abilities, but they were with too many. Things didn't get better when Jack arrived on the ship and Elizabeth realised that Will was trapped below deck in a room that was filling with water she tried to open the latch, but was captured before she could with the rest of the crew. In the meantime, Jack, Barbossa's monkey, had found the medallion, giving the pirates a distinct advantage. 

They were taken on board the _Pearl_ and tied to the mast as the _Interceptor_ slowly sank. Elizabeth managed to free herself and started to run towards the railing, before the ship exploded and Catherine gasped in horror as she realised Will was still on it. Her sister realised the same thing and tried to attack Barbossa, but he quickly managed to overpower her and threw her into the arms of his men. 

Catherine immediately fought against her bonds as the pirates pawed at her sister. She knew what would happen if this continued on and she'd rather spit in Satan's face than let that happen. A pirate punched her in the face for her troubles Luckily, as by a miracle, Will climbed the railing with a gun and got everyone's attention. Despite her already smarting and red face, Catherine grinned at the sight. 

"You lucky bastard." She muttered as Will ordered Barbossa to let Elizabeth go, threatening to kill himself with thr gun if he didn't. Elizabeth panicked over again at hearing that and Catherine lowered her head at that. After Will had revealed that he was the one they were looking for, despite Jack's pathetic attempts to bluff his way out of it, Barbossa told him to name his price. "That Elizabeth and Catherine go free!" Will demanded, knowing that Elizabeth would never forgive him if he forgot about her sister and she was his friend too.

"Catherine?" One of the pirates who took Elizabeth from her home, Pintel, asked in confusion and the woman in question turned her head to glare at him. "Bloody hell, captain! There's another woman here!" He shouted, many pirates coming to take a look at her and earning several glares as well. "Well, we know that now. Anything else?" Barbossa asked Will sarcastically, focusing himself on the most important part 

Female pirates often dressed up as men too, so this wasn't a very big deal for him. He rather preferred focusing himself on the prize in front of him. Jack pointed at himself, but Will misunderstood and ordered that the crew was not to be harmed. Barbossa walked forwards with a smirk. "Agreed." He replied and Catherine really didn't like the way he said it. She was pretty sure they just got out of the frying pan and into the fire. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Elizabeth didn't help throw things off the ship, but I wanted her and Catherine to do something.
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	8. Stranded

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

Catherine turned out to be right. Instead of sailing to a nearby town and safely dropping them off there, Barbossa sailed them to a deserted island in the middle of nowhere. Elizabeth was forced to jump from the infamous plank first, much to Will's fury. "Barbossa, you lying bastard! You swore they'd go free!" He shouted and Barbossa immediately turned to him. 

The pirate captain gleefully reminded him that he had agreed to let them go, but that Will had failed to specify when or where. Catherine slowly raised her hand to her chest and the pirates holding her immediately asked what she was doing. "Can I scratch an itch?" She asked sarcastically as she scratched her chest and the pirates calmed down and went back to watching Elizabeth. This enabled Catherine to slip her hand into her breast pocket and get her ring out of it, quickly hiding it in her hand.

She was not going to lose it. Elizabeth was forced to give her purple coat back as Barbossa had been the one to give it to get, much to the hoots and whistles of the pirates and Catherine stiffened in rage at that, wanting to do something. The pirates wanted her to jump, but Elizabeth looked at a desperate Will. Impatient, one of the pirates made her fall of by stomping on the plank. 

Catherine was pushed forwards and slowly walked towards the edge of the plank, already seeing Elizabeth swim towards the island. She didn't have to get rid of her coat as it was hers and her clothing wasn't as enticing, especially with her bound chest. Pretending to nervously play with her hands, she put her ring back on her finger and quickly jumped before the pirates noticed.

The water was rather warm, which was a slight relief. Catherine quickly got rid of her now completely wet coat as it already dragged her down and watched the piece of clothing sink to the bottom before finally following her sister. She heard another splash behind her as Jack was forced to jump into the water as well. _'Great, stuck on an island with a pirate.'_ She thought sarcastically as she swam further. They finally arrived at the island and Catherine immediately checked up on her sister. "Are you alright?" She asked.

"Yes, I'm fine. Are you? Your whole face is red where that filthy pirate punched you." Elizabeth answered, gently touching her cheek and Catherine immediately flinched back in pain. "I'm sorry." Elizabeth immediately apologised as she pulled her hand back. "It's okay. It's not your fault." Catherine said. "But it is! I decided to invoke parley. You were forced to chase after me. It really is my fault." Elizabeth said

Her voice was full of guilt as she sat down in the dry, white sand. Her sister immediately sat down next to her and gave her a hug. "You didn't know this would happen." She said. "I should have. You have dreamed about that ship for years. I should've been more careful." The younger sister replied and Catherine smiled, before hugging her even tighter.

Not wanting to do nothing, Elizabeth went to walk around the island with her sister. Jack simply waited until they returned, which only took a couple of hours. There was nothing on this island at all. Catherine always praised herself on her ability to make plans and improvise if needed, but she had nothing now. Due had absolutely no idea how to get off this island. Jack had patiently waited for them to figure out the futility of their journey around the island themselves and now walked into the trees.

"But you were marooned on this island before! Perhaps we could escape in the same way you did then." Elizabeth insisted as the two women followed him. Jack whirled around at that. "To what point and purpose, young missy? The _Black Pearl_ is gone. Unless either of you have a rudder and a lot of sails hidden underneath your clothing, which isn't likely, young William will be dead before we reach him." He said, before continuing on.

Catherine watched him go, but Elizabeth kept following him as she talked about all the stories she'd heard about him. Jack revealed that he'd only been there for three days the first time, before opening a hatch that was hidden underneath the sand, revealing a basement with bottles of rum. Apparently, he had hitched a ride with men who were smuggling it. However, it was clear that no one had been there in a while, something Jack blamed on Catherine's fiance.

The woman in question grinned at that, looking down at her ring for a moment. "So that's it then? That's the grand adventure of captain Jack Sparrow? You spent three days lying on a beach, drinking rum?" Elizabeth asked sarcastically. Jack welcomed the woman to the Caribbean, before giving Elizabeth a bottle. The woman fumed a bit, before getting an idea. "Catherine, remember our lessons about the native Americans and how they used smoke signals?" She asked and Catherine smirked as she understood what she was saying.

That night, Jack and Elizabeth were dancing and singing around a campfire, while Catherine was lying a bit away, seemingly sleeping. Drunkenly falling into the sand, Jack looked at Catherine, who had refused to join them. "Your sister is a stick in the mud, isn't she?" He asked. "She always was when I was little." Elizabeth answered, silently apologising to her sister.

She eventually got Jack drunk enough that he passed out, having only pretended to drink all of it by either throwing it over her shoulder or not drinking it. She poked him a few times, but he didn't react. "Alright, he's out." She said and Catherine immediately got up, having been pretending to sleep. "So, I'm a stick in the mud, huh?" The older sister asked as she had heard everything.

"Oh, shut up and help me get him out on the beach." Elizabeth muttered in answer as she grabbed one of Jack's legs. "By the way, you both can't sing." Catherine continued as she grabbed the other leg and the women pulled Jack out towards the beach. Elizabeth immediately glared at her and she smirked in answer. Once Jack was out of the strike zone, they went back and started to burn everything. All the rum, food, wood and even some of the trees when the flames reached high enough to touch them.

They went on until morning, when Jack finally woke up to the smell of fire and got up rather quickly despite the hangover he must have had. Seeing what they were doing, he tried to stop them. "Stop! Not good! What are you doing? You burned all the food, the shade, the rum!" He shouted as Elizabeth and Catherine walked towards the beach, having burned everything.

"Yes, the rum is gone." Elizabeth said, her eyes squinting in the harsh sun. "Why is the rum gone?" Jack asked desperately, but Catherine just ignored him and Elizabeth after that as she sat down on the sand while her irritated sister explained her reasoning. One of the reasons was that the navy was looking for them and would no doubt see it. While that was true, it also meant that James would soon hear of it, if he wasn't the one to find them in the first place

She would no doubt be in massive trouble for chasing after Elizabeth with a pirate and no back-up. She winced and gently rubbed her hurting cheek that was now a blue/purple. James was not going to be happy seeing that she was hurt. She could already hear him tell her that it was proof of how stupid her plan was. However, she also knew that she wouldn't regret it. Elizabeth sat down next to her once she was done talking after Jack was stuck on the rum being gone and prepared to watch out for any ship sailing by.

Jack was about to pull his gun, despite it only having one bullet and there being three people. Barbossa had refused to give him another bullet. Deciding not to kill either of them, he put the gun away and walked off. The sisters sat there in the sand for a couple of hours, throwing rocks into the water. Seeing movement in the distance, they stood up to see men appear at the other side of the island, their clothing and hats clearly indicating that they were navy.

"Katie, we're saved! I told you it would work!" Elizabeth said in an ecstatic tone as she started to run towards the men. She stopped at noticing her sister wasn't joining her. "Catherine?" She asked, turning around as the man started to run towards them as well, one of them ahead of the others. Catherine gulped at slowly recognising James's face and said one thing.

"I'm in so much trouble."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Read and review. See you next time


	9. Finally reunited

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

"Completely reckless.... could've gotten yourself killed.... what were you thinking?" 

For the past several minutes, Catherine had been scolded by James like a naughty child as they were standing a bit further from the rest, the woman herself looking down at the ground sheepishly. Elizabeth had tried to speak up in her sister's favour, but was hushed. After a few minutes, Catherine looked up at her fiance's face and saw that there was something behind the anger he was putting on at the moment. 

Fear. Absolute fear of losing her and relief at having finally found her. Taking in the bags under his eyes and his incredibly pale face, it was clear that he hadn't gotten much sleep since she had left. Feeling incredibly guilty as she knew it was her fault, she walked forwards and gave him a hug, resting her head on his chest and being careful not to get her bruised cheek in contact. James immediately stopped ranting in surprise, before slowly wrapping his arms around her and taking a shaky breath.

"I was so worried." He breathed as he held her tightly. "I'm sorry. I only did what I thought was right." She whispered in return. "I know, but that doesn't mean that you're out of trouble once we're back in Port Royal, understood?" He asked sternly and she nodded, before pulling back and smiling up at him. He gave her a small smile back, before noticing the bruise on her cheek and gently touching it. 

She immediately flinched in pain and a flash of anger crossed his face. "Who did this to you?" He asked in a low tone as he still held her close. "One of the pirates. They were all pawing at Elizabeth and I tried to get to her. Got punched for my efforts." She answered. James tightened his jaw in anger and hits eyes flashed, before he pulled her into a hug again. 

"I'm sorry for being unable to protect you." He whispered and she smiled at his words. "Considering I went behind your back, I think you can be forgiven." She replied and he let out a dry chuckle at that. "Come on, your father is waiting on the ship." He said after a few minutes as he pulled back and led her back towards the others. Elizabeth immediately gave her sister a worried look. "We hugged, but I'm not out of trouble yet." She whispered and she nodded in understanding as they went to the boat. 

Rowing back towards _The Dauntless_ , there was a slightly uncomfortable silence between the occupants as they got closer. Even Jack didn't say anything as the soldiers kept a close eye on him. Catherine noticed that James still looked tense as if he was awaiting another attack that would take her from him. She subtly moved her arm, so that it touched his. 

He immediately glanced at her at feeling it and gave her a small smile in response, gently grabbing her hand and squeezing it. For once, he really didn't care about appearing strong in front of his men. Not when his Catherine was finally safe and sound with Elizabeth. She was back with him and he would always protect her with his life. 

Arriving at the ship and carefully climbing on board, Catherine was immediately grabbed and pulled into a tight, relieved hug by her father. "Oh, thank goodness that you're both safe." He whispered as he pulled Elizabeth close as well. Both women hugged him back, happy to see him as well. After a few minutes, they pulled back and Elizabeth immediately asked them to go to the cursed island, but they refused. "But we've got to safe Will!" She protested loudly as Catherine silently went to stand next to James.

He extended his arm and she quickly wrapped her own around his. "No! You're both safe now. We'll return to Port Royal immediately, not go sailing after pirates." Weatherby said as he went to join his eldest daughter and his future son-in-law. "Then we condemn him to death." Catherine protested. Will was still her friend and this had been her idea. 

Her father looked at her. "The boy's fate is regrettable, but so is his and your decision to engage in piracy. We've managed to make an excuse for you, but not Mr. Turner." He said. "But that was to rescue me. To prevent anything from happening to me." Elizabeth insisted. "And it was my idea." Catherine added, making her father and fiance look at her in shock.

This was when Jack interrupted the conversation. "If I may be so bold to interject my professional opinion." He said as he joined them, two soldiers quickly following him. Catherine rolled her eyes. "I'm never going to live down calling him a professional pirate." She muttered to herself as Jack continued, getting really close to James, who immediately and protectively tightened his grip on Catherine. "The _Pearl_ was listing after the battle. It's very unlikely she'd be able to make good time." He started

"Think about it. The _Black Pearl._ The last real pirate threat in the Caribbean, mate. How can you pass that up?" He asked. James briefly glanced at Catherine. "By remembering I serve others, Mr. Sparrow. Not only myself." He said, before letting go of his fiancee, turn around and walk away. Seeing her sister's heartbroken expression at seeing him walk away, Catherine tried one last time.

"Commodore, I beg you, please do this. For me. As a wedding gift." She begged and James turned around at that, a conflicted expression on his face. "James, _please_." She whispered as she grabbed his hand. "A wedding. I love weddings. Drinks all around!" Jack shouted, disrupting the moment. James kept looking at Catherine for a moment, before looking at Jack. 

Jack quickly shut up at seeing it, remembering he was still a prisoner. "I know. "Clap him in irons," right?" He asked, holding out his arms. Still holding Catherine's hand, James took a step closer. "Mr. Sparrow. You will accompany these fine men to the helm and provide us with a bearing to _Isla de Muerta._ You will then spent the rest of the voyage contemplating all possible meanings of the phrase "Silent as the grave." Do I make myself clear?" He asked as Catherine and Elizabeth shared a happy look between the two of them 

Jack quickly agreed as the soldiers took him to the helm. Weatherby asked James if this was the right course of action. "Mr. Turner is still a subject of the British crown and it's my responsibility to see him home." James replied and the governor conceded, before glancing at where Elizabeth and Catherine were hugging each other in relief. "Take care of her." He said and James smiled and nodded.

He gently took Catherine to his office to look after her bruised cheek. "It's not that big, thankfully and it doesn't seem to be broken. It will heal on its own in a few days." He said gently after checking it over. She smiled at him and squeezed his hand. He smiled back and pulled her into another hug, taking a deep breath at having her in his arms again.

"Never scare me like that again, please." He begged, burying his face in her hair. "I won't. I promise that I won't." She immediately whispered in answer, rubbing his back and burrowing herself into his chest, smelling his familiar scent and relaxing at finally being back with him, even though they were going to the cursed pirates once again. Several times, she opened her mouth to tell him that the pirates were cursed, only to back out. If he knew, he'd go back to Port Royal immediately and leave Will to his fate. She couldn't let that happen.

She hoped that they'd all survive this. She, James, Elizabeth, Will, her father and even Jack. Even though he was absolutely a pirate through-and-through, he definitely wasn't the worst, especially compared to the likes of Barbossa. Pulling back slightly, James gently brushed her hair back and kissed her. All thoughts flew from her head as she kissed him back. For a moment, it was just James and her and everything was perfect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt really inspired
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	10. Free Will

disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

"Let me get this straight for a minute: you stabbed an immortal pirate captain while on his ship that was manned by his crew with no back-up plan whatsoever?" Catherine asked with a soft laugh as the sisters shared a private moment. "I was panicking, alright? I thought they were going to kill me." Elizabeth hissed and her sister stopped laughing, but a smile was still on her face. 

"Yes, but you have to admit that it was a very stupid idea." She said. Her younger sister scowled, but conceded. Catherine giggled again and Elizabeth smiled as well. "You didn't tell him, did you?" She asked and Catherine calmed down, shaking her head. "He would've gone gone home immediately. Let's hope that Jack has a plan." She said and Elizabeth nodded at that. "Why did you do it? Why did you beg him to go into danger?" She asked. "I know you, Lizzie. You would've been devastated if you lost Will. I couldn't have that." She said. 

Elizabeth immediately smiled at her sister, giving her a big hug, which was quickly returned. This was what their father walked in on and he smiled at the sight. His two daughters safe and sound. He was so incredibly relieved that they were alright, even if they were about to sail into pirate territory. He told them that they were almost there and the women quickly followed him back towards the deck. 

James, Jack and several of the men were about to get into the long boats to get to the island. James pulled Catherine apart and held her tightly against him, looking into her eyes. She gave him a tiny smile at seeing the fear in his eyes. "Be careful. These pirates have had a long time to come up with many different ideas and plans." She said, the only hint she dared to give. He nodded and gave her a warm kiss, before leaving with Jack. 

In the long boat, James used his telescope to look at the abandoned, cursed ship. "I don't care about the situation. Every attempt to get inside could turn into an ambush." He said. "Not if you're the one doing the ambushing." Jack piped up from behind him. He gave a pretty good sounding idea, but James would be dammed before he listened to a pirate. "Now, to be quite honest with you: there's still a slight risk to those aboard the _Dauntless_ , which includes the further Mrs. Commodore and her sister." Jack continued and James looked down at that. 

Back on their ship, Elizabeth and Catherine were dragged to a bedroom/office for their safety, the former more than the latter as she tried to tell them about the curse anyway as guilt had caught up with her. She hadn't known what James had planned to do and seeing him get into the small long boat had finally made her tell the truth. She couldn't let her sister's fiance get himself killed. 

Lieutenant Gillette didn't believe her at all, saying that a "little mermaid" had already told him the story, before closing the door on them. A Guard made sure they didn't escape. Elizabeth turned towards her sister. "How are you so calm about this?! James is in danger! Don't you care?" She asked and Catherine immediately turned towards her. The younger daughter flinched back at seeing the anger in her sister's eyes at the accusation.

"Don't you _dare_ assume I don't care. May I remind you that James is my fiance? I'm worrying myself sick, but it's too late to tell them the truth now. They won't believe us. We had our chance, we threw it away and now we'll have to live with the consequences whatever they may be. Now, hurry up and help me with these bedsheets." Catherine answered, already pulling said sheets off the bed after having taken a look outside . Quickly understanding what she was doing, Elizabeth went to help getting them off and tying them together. 

The balcony doors were unlocked and they used that to secretly climb out of the room, even when their father came to talk to them from outside the door. Catherine felt a bit guilty to go around his back once again, but if they could save both Will and James by helping defeat Barbossa and his crew, then she'd gladly take the chance. Peeking over the edge, Catherine gulped at seeing the height.

"You can stay here." Elizabeth said in concern. "I'm not going to let you face those thrice cursed pirates alone again." The older sister whispered as she carefully climbed over the edge of the balcony and down, holding the rope of bedsheets in a death grip as she went down.Elizabeth followed and once they were in the long boat that happened to be there and rowed away just as their father realised what they had done.

In the meantime, Jack had managed to make a backstabbing deal with Barbossa to kill James's men on the ship to keep Will alive a bit longer and secretly steal one of the coins, immediately getting cursed as well. He had also told Will that both Elizabeth and Catherine were safe. Things went wrong when his former First Mate told his cursed men to get to the ship by walking, not by boats. Two of the pirates, Pintel and Ragetti, the same two who had taken Elizabeth from Port Royal, got a very different assignment.

Elizabeth and Catherine climbed aboard the _Pearl,_ sneaking past two pirates who were too busy discussing what they would eat when they weren't cursed anymore to notice the two women climbing up. Getting onto the deck, both women jumped at having Jack, the cursed monkey, screech in their faces. While Catherine had to put her hand against her mouth to prevent a scream, Elizabeth glowered at it, not scared anymore and threw him overboard. 

This alerted the pirates on guard. The sisters had to hide as they ran upstairs. Freeing Mr. Gibbs and the others, they knocked the pirates into the sea. Unfortunately for the sisters, that's where the crew stopped helping them. They refused to listen to Elizabeth and forced the two to row towards the island by themselves. "Bloody pirates." Elizabeth grumbled as they rowed. "They're pirates. What did you expect?" Catherine asked. 

While that was going on, the undead crew had managed to take the soldiers by surprise by having a feminine dressed up Pintel and Ragetti distract them from a distance while the rest snuck on board via the sea floor. The only reason the soldiers managed to fight back was because a angry, fed-up and utterly humiliated Pintel dropped the parasol that hid them from the moon to hit Ragetti, revealing their cursed forms to a horrified Gillette, who realised that Catherine and Elizabeth had been right about them. 

James and his men were still in their boats, until a dying soldier managed to ring the alarm bell and he realised what was going on. "Back to the ship! Move!" He ordered and the men quickly obeyed as they rowed back as fast as they could. Even getting shot at by Pintel and Ragetti from their own ship didn't deter them. Arriving at the ship, they immediately climbed on board and joined the fight. 

James widened his eyes at seeing the cursed pirates, knowing of Catherine's dreams. Had she known it was this crew? She must've as her sister had been kidnapped by the same pirates. Why hadn't either of them said anything. His fiancee's vague warning before he left came to mind and he now realised what she had meant when she had said the pirates had a long time to figure things out. After that, he focused on the fight. 

Inside the cursed island, a fight had broken out between Jack, Will, Barbossa and the remaining unread pirates. Two pirates managed to corner Will. "I'll show you the meaning of pain." One threatened hi. "You want pain?" Elizabeth asked loudly, whacking him away with an oar and Catherine taking care of the other one. "Try wearing a corset." She continued with a glare as she helped Will up. With a cursed Jack and Barbossa fighting each other, the three of them took care of the rest of the pirates.

This included Will and Elizabeth quickly stabbing a pole through three of them while they were in their skeleton form and Catherine lighting up a bomb, putting it right in-between the ribs of the middle pirate. With that done, they pushed the pirates out of the moonlight, trapping the bomb inside the pirate. "No fair." He whimpered just before they exploded 

Jack used this to cut his hand, make the blood fall on his coin and throw it to Will. Not noticing it, Barbossa aimed his gun at Elizabeth, Catherine immediately pulling her younger sister behind her own body protectively. A gunshot sounded, making them both flinch. Luckily, it had been Jack finally using his one shot to kill Barbossa, just as Will broke the curse by adding his own blood and coin. 

With the curse finally broken, Barbossa and several of his crew immediately fell over dead as they were attacked by James and his men. Realising that they could die again and were surrounded, they quickly surrendered and dropped their weapons. "The ship is ours, gentlemen." James said with a smirk, relieved and happy that they had won. There had been casualties, but they had won. Cheers immediately were shouted by his men and Weatherby, even though the latter had done nothing but hide from the cursed pirates. 

On the island, Elizabeth and Will shared a tender moment while Jack and even Catherine herself were looking around at the treasure spread around. Of course, nothing came from it as even after everything, they were still reluctant to confess their feelings. Seeing that he was not going to say what she really wanted to hear, Elizabeth walked away.

Jack and Catherine joined Will, the former covered in jewels and wearing a crown and the latter carrying a chest filled with regular gold. "If you were waiting for the perfect moment, that was it." Jack commented, referring to when Will broke him out of jail. "Don't bother, Sparrow. I've been trying to get them to confess their feelings for years without success." Catherine sighed.

"Well, it seems that I need a ride now that this way of immortality is not a very nice way." Jack said and Catherine quickly laughed at his words. "If I ever find another way to make you immortal, Jack. I will certainly tell you." She said with a smile, using his name for the first time. Jack playfully pointed at her with a smirk. "I'll hold you onto that love." He replied and she chuckled, before walking away. Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at seeing the chest. "Catherine, really?" She asked."Oh, no. This is not what you think." Catherine quickly said

"Jack told me that this is normal gold. I still owe James a ship." She continued and Elizabeth smiled. "If he's still alive." She said gently. "He is. I can feel it." Catherine replied as they arrived at the long boat, the guys quickly joining them. Rowing out, they saw that the _Pearl_ was gone, meaning Jack had to go with them to Port Royal and essentially, the gallows.Climbing aboard the _Dauntless_ , they were met with the unamused faces of James and Weatherby.

While the sisters were relieved they were alright, they knew that they were in trouble. "We'll talk about about this later." Weatherby said, before he and James took the women away and Jack was taken prisoner. As they were walking, Catherine carefully touched the back of James's hand with hers. After a few seconds, he grabbed her hand in return and squeezed, making her smile. They were all safe and that was the most important thing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two more chapters before this story is over. 
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	11. A ruined execution

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Elizabeth and Catherine were grounded the minute that they returned to Port Royal. They weren't allowed to go anywhere in town without a soldier escort. Eleanor had been ecstatic to see that both Catherine and Elizabeth were alright Will was granted clemency as he had saved Elizabeth and both sisters had vouched for him, pleading their father to give him a chance and he had finally relented.

James had scolded Catherine for keeping the curse a secret, but had ultimately forgiven her as she had wanted to save her friend. That didn't mean that he wasn't hurt about the fact that she had prioritised her friend's safety over his, her father's and his men's and she had apologised profusely with genuine tears in her eyes. He had pulled her into his arms. "No more secrets, understood?" He had asked and she had immediately nodded in answer, holding him tightly and taking a deep breath to calm herself. 

She and James had worked hard to mend the rift between them that her sneaking around had created since then. James had laughed at seeing the treasure chest from the island and hearing why she had taken it with her, touched that she had actually thought about something like this Yes, the _Interceptor_ had been a very valuable asset, but he valued her life far more than a ship. Still, he appreciated the sentiment.

Unfortunately, today was a day neither of the sisters had looked forward to: Jack's execution. As members of the high society of the town, the sisters were forced to be there, standing with their father and James. Catherine had her arm wrapped around her fiance's, holding onto him tightly. Even if they had started off on the wrong foot, she had come to appreciate him and it really wasn't fair.

He should be free to roam the seven seas, not be hanged because he saved her sister twice. She wished that she could do something to help him, but the formerly cursed pirates had taken her sword when she was taken prisoner and everyone kept a close eye on her, so she couldn't do anything. Several drums slowly started to play and Catherine tensed up as Jack's crimes were read out, the man himself already standing in front of the noose. James subtly put his hand over hers to try and calm her down, but it didn't really help

She saw a big hat with a large feather move through the crowd and raised an eyebrow as the owner briefly turned to look at them. _'Where did Will get that hat?'_ She wondered to distract herself, but it worked even less than James's well-meaning gesture had. "This is wrong." She heard Elizabeth whisper and silently agreed with her. "Commodore Norrington is bound by the law, as are we all." Weatherby said. 

However, Catherine noticed that he didn't really sound as certain as he normally did and James even looked down at hearing the words, rather than stand up straight like he usually did. She briefly glanced at him, before looking back at the execution. One of Jack's crimes was impersonating a clerk of the Church of England and Catherine barely suppressed a snort at that and at seeing him grin at hearing it. 

Just as the man reached the end of the list of crimes, Will walked towards them. "Governor Swann, commodore, Catherine.... Elizabeth." He greeted each person in turn, getting nods from the first three. Elizabeth looked at him, wondering what he wanted. "I should have told you every day from the moment I met you...I love you." Will confessed. Weatherby and James looked at the dumbfounded woman in surprise. Will gave her a final smile, before walking away. "Finally." Catherine muttered, before noticing something off to the side. 

A familiar looking parrot was sitting on a banner. Her eyes widened as the drums started to speed up. The _Pearl_ was nearby. She looked at Elizabeth and subtly gestured towards the parrot. The younger woman gasped as Will started to push people out of the way to try and help Jack. "Marines." James started as he went to walk down, but Catherine had tensed up even more and refused to let him go. 

"I can't breathe." Elizabeth gasped as she fell down. "Elizabeth." Weatherby said in shock as he, Catherine and James went to help her. She got up a lot quicker this time as she had only been pretending to give Will the time he needed to throw his sword underneath Jack's feet, barely managing to save the pirate from getting hanged. Realising what she had done, James pulled himself free and went to arrest Will and Jack.

Fighting the executioner and cutting the rope Jack was literally hanging from, both pirate and blacksmith managed to fight several soldiers, before finally getting surrounded by at least a dozen soldiers who all had their muskets aimed at them. How Will had exactly hoped this would go, Catherine didn't know, but it didn't really matter. Right now, her friend was in danger once again. She and Elizabeth quickly joined the others as Catherine heard her fiance's voice speak to Will in a cold, disappointed tone.

"I thought we might have to endure some manner of ill-conceived escape attempt, but not from you." He said as he held his sword against Will's neck. Noticing Catherine approach from the corner of his eye, he held out his free arm to stop her from going any further. "On our return to Port Royall, I granted you clemency and this is how you repay me, by throwing in your lot with him? He's a pirate." Weatherby said, just as disappointed.

He had done it to make his daughters happy and Will threw it back in their faces. "And a good man." Will retorted. Catherine saw Jack look around smugly at being called that and rolled her eyes. He was just unbelievable. "If all I have achieved is that the hangman will have two sets of boots instead of one, then so be it. At least, my conscience will be clear." Will continued and she bit her lip as James took another step forward.

"You forget your place, Turner." He growled, ignoring Catherine's attempts to pull him back, so he wouldn't kill her friend. Will looked right back at him without fear. "It's right here. Between you and Jack." He said. At this, Elizabeth walked forwards and stood next to Will, wrapping her arm around his. "As is mine." She said, surprising everyone. James glanced back at Catherine, but she seemed just as shocked as the rest. Looking back as they continued talking, he didn't notice her make eye contact with Jack and gesture towards the parrot.

Seeing it and since the soldiers had lowered their weapons at Weatherby's orders as he didn't want guns aimed at his youngest daughter, he loudly spoke up and immediately got their attention as he planned to make his escape. "Well, I'm actually feeling really good about this." He said, before getting into both Weatherby's and James's faces, both men looking disgusted by having him this close.

He then looked at Catherine, despite James attempting to keep her behind him and his protective glare towards the pirate at seeing him look at her."Don't forget, love. You still owe me a way to immortality." He said and Catherine stuck out her tongue. He smirked and gave her a wink. Telling Elizabeth that "it never would've worked out between them," to her confusion and complimenting Will's hat, he ran up a flight of stairs.

Standing at the edge of the fort where James and Elizabeth had stood not to long ago everyone following him."Friends this is the day you'll always remember as the day that..." He began, before tipping over the edge and falling. Quickly running further and looking down, even Catherine as she tightly held onto James, they saw him fall into the sea. Just as Gillette mentioned that there was no way for him to escape, the _Black Pearl_ sailed around the corner and Jack happily swam towards it. Gillette asked for orders, but James hesitated.

Feeling a hand on his arm, he looked up to see Catherine give him a pleading look. Weatherby noticed it too and spoke up. "Perhaps, on the rare occasion, pursuing the right course demands an act of piracy, piracy itself can be the right course of action?" He suggested and James gave him a tiny smile, before calling Will's name. When the man stood in front of him despite Elizabeth's reluctance, James pulled his new sword and looked at it. 

"This is a beautiful sword. I would expect that the man who made it to show the same care and devotion in every aspect of his life." He said, having figured out that it had been Will who made it from Catherine's ramblings about how Mr. Brown always let his apprentice do all the work and warning him to take good care of Elizabeth. Although, if he didn't, James knew that not he, but his fiancee would be the biggest danger. 

"Thank you." Will said in relief. James gave him a nod, before walking away with Catherine. "Commodore! What about Sparrow?" Gillette asked desperately. James looked back, before sharing a look with his fiancee. "Oh, I think we can afford to give him one day's headstart. After all, I have a wedding to plan." He finally said with a smile and she smiled back, before walking away again. Catherine leaned against him as they walked. "Thank you." She whispered and he smiled at her. "You're welcome." He said, before asking something. 

"Did you really tense up when Mr. Turner went to free Sparrow or were you trying to stop me?" He asked. "Both." She said sheepishly and he rolled his eyes as they entered his office. "You are absolutely terrible, Ms. Swann." He said and she turned to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck and looking into his green eyes. "You love me anyway." She said and he smiled. "You're lucky that I do." He replied, before kissing her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter and then, it's on to "Dead man's chest." 
> 
> Let me tell you, it's gonna be a bumpy ride
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	12. Happily ever after?

disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

One beautiful summer morning, Catherine was woken up by her ecstatic and already dressed sister, instead of Eleanor. "Wake up, Katie! Today is the big day." Elizabeth said, barely refraining from jumping up-and-down on the bed like she used to when she was young. Catherine smiled at her sister as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and slowly sat up.

Once she was decent, Weatherby walked in and smiled at both his daughters as he held something behind his back. "This was just delivered for you. I do believe its from the smithy." He said as he showed her what he was holding. It was a completely new sword in a sheath. Ever since Will and Elizabeth had started courting, he and Catherine had also started to teach her how to use one to defend herself. Will had also promised Catherine to make her a new sword, but he had clearly waited to give it to her until today

Catherine slowly took it over and pulled it out of its sheath. It was just as long as a normal sword, but thinner. "It's beautiful. I really have to thank Will later." She said happily. "As long as you do that with words and not a kiss, I'm fine with that." Elizabeth joked and both her sister and father laughed. "Don't worry, Lizzie. After all the trouble I went through to get you to confess your feelings, I wouldn't get between you." Catherine joked back. 

Weatherby chuckled, before giving his daughter a tight hug. She immediately hugged him back, knowing that today would be an emotional day for everyone in the family. Pulling back, the governor smiled at his oldest daughter with tears in his eyes. "If only your mother was here." He whispered and both sisters gave him a sad smile. Jane Swann had died when Catherine was seven and Elizabeth four years old. 

Even the oldest sister had some trouble remembering her at times. Both Catherine and Elizabeth hugged their father tightly in answer and he hugged them back. "You still have us father and mother is with us. I can feel it." Elizabeth said and he nodded. After a few minutes, he took a deep breath and finally let go of them. "Well, I'll leave you to prepare." He said, before walking out and the maids immediately ran in with the dress and makeup. Elizabeth gladly helped them get her older sister ready for the day. 

Her hair was pulled up and held together with silver pins, her veil attached to it. Her dress was very simple, but beautiful at the same time. It had lace going from the top to the skirt and a ceinture around her waist. Her make-up was very light and natural at her insistence as she didn't want to look like a doll. She may seem more ladylike than her sister, but even she had her limits

Elizabeth pretty much squealed in happiness once they were done. "You look beautiful, Katie!" She gushed as Catherine was finally allowed to look at herself in the mirror as her mischievous sister had covered it up beforehand. The older sister could barely recognise herself as she looked into the mirror, Elizabeth hanging over her shoulder with a beaming smile.

She of course knew that she was getting married, but seeing herself in the dress really reminded that in just a few short hours, she wouldn't be a Swann anymore, but a Norrington. "Is that me?" She whispered and Elizabeth chuckled. "It really is, Katie." She replied, wrapping her arms around her sister's shoulders from behind and hugging her. Catherine grabbed her sister's arm and smiled at her reflection. She really was getting married. Eleanor had gone time get Weatherby and he carefully entered the room.

Catherine quickly turned around and stood up at noticing his arrival. At seeing her in the wedding dress, her father's held back tears finally spilled over his cheeks in a rapid tempo. "Oh, father." Catherine said with a laugh, walking towards him and grabbing his hands. He quickly pulled her into another hug and held her tightly. She immediately hugged him back and rubbed his back.

The ceremony would be held in the garden of the mansion and many guests had already arrived, including the groom. Originally, the plan was to marry at the Fort, but both bride and groom had protested that. Once it was time, Elizabeth went down to prepare and was met by Will in the entrance hall and they walked towards the garden.

Once she was gone, Weatherby looked at his daughter. "Are you ready?" He asked and she nodded, before linking her arm with his and walking out of her now old bedroom. It would always be hers when she came to stay at the mansion, but from this day onwards, she'd live with James. In the meantime, Elizabeth and Will had walked out into the garden, where James and the pastor was waiting. They gave the nervous man a smile, Will subtly moving his head backwards to indicate that Catherine was coming.

James gave them a tiny, but thankful nod in response, before Will and Elizabeth took their places, the woman almost bouncing up-and-down at seeing her sister finally getting married. Soon after, the music changed and the guests stood up and turned around to see Catherine walk towards her soon-to-be husband at her father's arm.

If Elizabeth had to be truly honest, there had been a time in the very beginning of Catherine's and James's relationship that she had wondered what her sister saw in the man. He was kind and a good friend for sure, but he always seemed so cold and aloof about everything. However, as she watched him barely being able to keep tears at bay at seeing her sister, she realised she had been very wrong

Catherine found herself beaming a smile the second she finally laid her eyes on James. Her incredibly handsome commodore was there waiting for her. He immediately smiled at seeing her and she could barely see tears shining in the corner of his eyes as she walked closer. The stoic James Norrington was on the verge of crying because of her and there couldn't be a better compliment for her then that. They finally arrived at the makeshift altar and where the pastor and James were standing.

James could hardly believe his eyes as he saw Catherine walk towards him. She looked like a goddess as she seemed to float towards him and he felt tears prickling in the corner of his eyes, but he found that he didn't care as he kept looking at her. She was smiling at him and he immediately found himself smiling back as she finally reached him. 

Weatherby slowly gave his daughter's hand to James, gave her one last kiss on the cheek and finally joined his youngest daughter. The pastor started with the vows, but the couple barely heard him as they focused on each other. Finally, after several minutes the pastor turned towards Catherine and asked the question both wanted to hear.

"Catherine Swann. Will you have this man as your wedded husband, to live together after God’s Ordinance, in the holy Estate of Matrimony? Wilt you obey him, serve him, love, honour and keep him in sickness and in health, and forsaking all other, keep you only unto him, so long as you both shall live?” He asked and Catherine looked at her almost husband. "I will." She swore, although there was a certain twinkle in her eyes that said _"Mostly."_ James noticed it and smiled as he gave his own vows.

He swore to protect, nurture and love Catherine until the end of his days. Her beaming smile at hearing him swear it, made his heart skip a beat. The pastor finally told James that he could kiss the bride and he wasted no second, lifting her veil and kissing her with all he had. The crowd applauded as they broke apart, smiling at each other. 

"I love you." Catherine whispered. "I love you too." He breathed as they pulled back and were congratulated by family and friends in Catherine's case and colleagues and friends in James's case. "I'm so happy for you." Elizabeth whispered and Catherine smiled at her sister, before their father gave her a hug. "Congratulations, sweetheart. I hope that you will be very happy." He said. "Thank you, father." Catherine whispered happily as she hugged him back.

Elizabeth had gone to congratulate James and their father followed, leaving Will to congratulate his future sister-in-law. "Can you imagine what would've happened if my sister was an only child?" Catherine joked. "And James was in love with her as well? I dread to think." Will joked back and she giggled, before more people came to congratulate her. After a while, James took her over again and led her inside. The reception was held in the ballroom and once all the guests were seated, Catherine and James stood up for the first dance.

Holding her close to him, James swayed his new wife back-and-forth on the music. Catherine kept smiling through the whole dance as her grey eyes looked into his green ones, both shining with happiness. The feast seemed to fly by and before they knew it, it was time for the couple to retire.James, who had kept himself sober for this, took his wife to his house.

Carrying her over the threshold and to his, now their, bed. Putting her down, he smiled down at her. She smiled back as she pulled him closer for a kiss. Not many other words were uttered that night. The next morning, Catherine woke up in her husband's arms. She smiled at his sleeping face, before kissing his cheek and snuggling closer as she closed her eyes for a few more hours of sleep, feeling incredibly happy and content

Little did Catherine Norrington née Swann know that within a couple of years, her happy life would be completely in shambles 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the last chapter for this story. Not sure when the next story will be as I have other stories. I'll post another chapter of this story with the announcement when the next story is up. 
> 
> I have no idea how a 18th century wedding went, so I just improvised.
> 
> https://nl.pinterest.com/pin/726979564842517250/ (wedding dress(I know this is a modern dress, but I couldn't find a 18th century dress that I liked.))
> 
> Read and review. See you next time


	13. New story

hey guys. 

The next story in the series is up. It's called "chests and hearts." So go check it out!


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